Boum-Ba-Di-Boum

DESCRIPTION: French. Singer's mother wakes her at dawn and has her fetch water from the fountain. She talks with a cavalie. She asks, "What shall I say to mother?" "Just say to your mother / The fountain boiled today". Refrain: "Boum-ba-di-boum tra-la-la-la!"
AUTHOR: unknown
EARLIEST DATE: 1946 (Berry-FolkSongsOfOldVincennes)
KEYWORDS: foreignlanguage courting work humorous lover
FOUND IN: US(MW) Canada(Que) France
REFERENCES (2 citations):
Berry-FolkSongsOfOldVincennes, p. 74, "Boum-ba-di-boum!" (1 text + translation, 1 tune)
ADDITIONAL: Edith Fowke and Richard Johnston, _Folk Songs of Quebec (Chansons de Quebec)_, Waterloo Music Company, 1957, pp. 34-35, "Boum Badiboum" (1 French text plus English translation, 1 tune)
NOTES [109 words]: The French word for what the fountain did is "brouillait" or "brouillee"; the editors of Berry-FolkSongsOfOldVincennes translate that as "boiled" but online translators say "blurred" or "scrambled". None of them make sense. I note, however, that Lead Belly's song "Scrambled Eggs" uses "brouillee", but how would a fountain get scrambled? In any case, French for "the fountain boiled" is "la fontaine bouillie". - PJS
If it's a natural spring, the flow of water might, under certain circumstances, dramatically increase, causing the water to bubble and roil. I suspect this is the intent. I have no idea why this would be an excuse for delay, however. - RBW
Last updated in version 2.5
File: BerV074

Go to the Ballad Search form
Go to the Ballad Index Song List

Go to the Ballad Index Instructions
Go to the Ballad Index Bibliography or Discography